Monthly Archives: June 2014

Because of the consistency and quality of its waves as well as vibrant marine life and history, San Miguel is where Mexican surfing started, today the Todos Santos Bay was inaugurated as the world’s sixth surf reserve. This means that no construction can be made on either of the five beaches, Salsipuedes, San Miguel, Stack’s, 3emes, and Todos Santos, and that access must be guaranteed. A win for surfers and ocean lovers!

Surfers coming back from the paddle out

The project started in 2007, when a group of friends found out that developers wanted to built ports and piers at their favorite surf spots. So, they got together and called the Surfrider Foundation asking for help. Surfrider told them they could protect their spots, but they would have to fight, no one would do it for them. Since then, an international collaboration between Surf Ens, Pronatura, Save the Waves and Costa Salvaje has helped the San Miguel bay become an international surf reserve.

Kids describing what surfing means to them

Each of these five beaches brings something to the beaches of Mexico. San Miguel was the first spot to welcome American surfers. Although it is now private, Salsipuedes has gained an international reputation for the quality of its break and beach. 3emes and Stack’s welcome surfers of all levels while Todos Santos/Killers attract big waves and welcomes the Big Wave Tour.

Can you see Todos Santos in the distance?

The event was held at San Miguel, the first Mexican beach to welcome surfing in the 50s and today an iconic spot, both for American and Mexican surfers. It started with a paddle out, followed by a dance by an indigenous group, and a talk by people who supported the project and, most importantly, those who put the project together.

Ensenada surfers celebrating their success

The event really was an international success. It is great to see that surfers will be able to keep enjoying these great breaks without fear they will be developed upon. And thank you to those surfers, who for the past seven years have fought hard to keep their beaches free. Thank you for your hard work!

One of the many reasons San Miguel is a world surf reserve

Although the waves today were not the famed San Miguel waves, this meant that people were there to listen to the speakers (and were not distracted by the break’s famous rights).

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All My Friends is an annual music festival in Northern Baja, mostly near Tijuana. The premise of the festival is that every year it changes venue and time of year. This year, ALMV was beachside at the Hotel Castillos del Mar, the perfect location for a summer concert.

On top of having different kinds of music, there was plenty of food and crafts to be purchased. From Marfil’s awesome sweatshirts to brownies and everything in between, there was something you would want to buy. There was even a tattoo art gallery!

Welcome to All My FriendsLa Brownie Girl’s delicious brownies were the perfect amount of sweet, without being over chocolateyTibetan prayer flags, incense, cool shirts, you could find a little bit of everything!VPaix was selling postcardsMarfil with some great stuff and stickers!Make sure you don’t fall off the cliff!Tattoo artBeach concert, literally!Not too sure what was going on during this performanceALMV sunsetThe crowd enjoying the music

All My Friends was an interesting event, there was a garden, pool and beach stage. All attracting plenty of music lovers. Even if a particular band wasn’t to your liking, you could spend that time eating or browsing the arts and crafts.

Right after the Boulevard Aguacaliente on the libre (free) road to Rosarito there exists a hidden food truck haven; have you heard of Estacion 55 yet? It’s relatively new, about six months old or so and is definitely worth the trip to Tijuana or a perfect lunch break on your way south.

How far are you from burgers, pizzas, tacos and crepes?? Closer than Paris or Sydney!

So, you’re probably wondering what’s available? Well, there is something for everyone. Whether you are looking for a burger, pizza, fish tacos, tortas (burger-sandwich hybrid), empanadas, or crepes, you are sure to find something to suit your appetite. It’s the perfect place if your friends are picky eaters because there are meat, fish, and vegetarian options. (But, for lack of a liquor license, not the best place if you want to support local breweries!)

Tuna tostada loaded with guacamole and salsa

There are many ways to go about eating at the restaurant. You can either go for your meal and dessert, just your meal, a sampling of all the trucks, a snack, or just for dessert. It’s up to you!

Cheese, corn, and “rajas” empanada… Yummy!

As an appetizer, order one of the many combinations of empanadas. All are $19 pesos ($1.50 dollar) and accompanied by a boat of salsas. There are various types of empanadas you can order, chorizo with Oaxaca cheese (the king of Mexican cheeses), corn and rajas, picadillo, as well as other great combinations.

Try everything!

If you are craving fish and shrimp, try Ta’Costeno. Whether you ask the waitress what she recommends or you go for the “try everything for $150 pesos (about $12 dollars)” platter you will find your meal delicious. I highly recommend the “try everything” platter, you try every taco and get the agua fresca of the day. If you aren’t too hungry and don’t want to try everything, give the shrimp taco or the tuna tostada a try.

Looks good and the shell shaped plates are awesome! Even if you’re not crazy about octopus, the Tentaculo Negro is a must try!

If you’re not in the mood for seafood, give Via Bistro a try. It’s a brick oven pizza with all kinds of combinations. And if you don’t feel like trying any other food truck, order a greek salad as your appetizer and a pizza as your main meal. Whatever you order, make sure you try the sauce; it’s the perfect companion to your tasty pizza.

Make sure to ask for the daily special, it’s not on the menu but can surprise you, today’s was ricotta cheese with basil

And, the best for last, DESSERT! Make sure you try Rodante’s crepes and macaroons. The crepes are usually Nutella, caramel, Suzette (orange), berries, or apples. Obviously you can never go wrong with Nutella, but it’s always nice to try something new!

Apple crepe

After eating all that food, there was no place for the tortas and burgers. However, considering everything else was exquisite, I can only imagine those are both great. The burgers have an eating contest, kind of like Man v Food; where you have to eat a GIANT burger, 1 liter of soda and french fries, all within 30 minutes. Are you capable?

If you make it, the meal is on the house!

I’m sure you can tell you should eat there, but the best part was the price. Sharing between four friends, we spent $100 pesos each (about $8 dollars)! How great is that?

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Right behind the Xolos stadium, in an area known as La Herradura, there is a cute, fresh, delicious restaurant, Mami’s Place. It offers both indoor and outdoor seating as well as a variety of food, drinks, and daily specials.

Outside the restaurant. It’s right by a roundabout and a Soriana.

Mami’s Place offers pizzas, salads, paninis, appetizers, fresh juices, wine and beer. You can also ask for the “platillo del dia,” the menu of the day. Today there was chicken or fish with vegetables and rice, both accompanied by beet soup. However, I chose to split a salad and a shrimp pizza.

The House Salad. plenty of colors to brighten your day!

The health starts as soon as you are offered the “wait for us snack,” whereas most restaurants give tortilla chips or bread, Mami’s Place gives you carrots and cucumbers with Tajin, a chile powder used on fruits and vegetables.

Fresh squeezed green and energetic juices as well as a fresh garden salad, what else could you ask for?

We ordered the House Salad, which had mixed salad greens, tomatoes and red onions. However the salad selection was varied and offered a red berry salad, a salad with orange slices, among other healthy options. You could either choose the small or large portion, because we said that we would be sharing, we got both a large salad and pizza. A lot of food!

A feast for two!

There are many pizzas to choose from, whether you are vegetarian, pescatarian or a meat lover, there will be a pizza for you. The “camaron” pizza is shrimp pizza with chipotle seasoning and fresh avocados. It was the perfect amount of spicy and if you wanted more spice, they offer jalapenos and spicy olive oil.

Healthy combo

The service is great and from the fresh juices to the freshly made pizza and salad, everything is served on time. Just make sure you specify which portion you want, otherwise the waitress will assume you are famished. To make sure the service is fast, the waitress gives you a buzzer in case you need something urgently.

Highly recommend this quaint restaurant. If you’ve been let me know if you liked it!

*Follow Baja is Yours on Instagram @Bajaisyours to discover the beauties of Baja California.

There was a lot going on this week-end, from the Craft Beer Expo to the Tijuana Rumble Fest, there was something for every taste. However, I was feeling hungry and knew there were two more beer fests (one in July on the Revolucion and another in August at the CECUT), so I decided to go to Rock’n’Taco. A festival where rock and tacos were combined to offer a fun afternoon.

It sure attracted a lot of people!

The event was held on the world famous Revolucion between calles 8 and 9. The event was free and welcomed 20 local taquerias and seven local bands. As the night went on, the bands were better. Some bands even came from Ensenada.

Taquerias everywhere!

You could find a little of everything, from the famous Kokopelli seafood and vegetarian tacos to soy based tacos, and obviously delicious meat tacos. There were birria tacos, adobada tacos, regular beef tacos, everything tacos!

Birria tacos… YU-MMY

I believe this was the event’s first time, however there’s a good chance they will be able to make this an annual one. I’ll be sure to keep you posted if it happens, I didn’t know about it until the day before. I’ll make sure you are aware ahead of time next time!

*Follow Baja is Yours on Instagram @Bajaisyours to discover the beauties of Baja California.